Being grateful is great.

Yesterday a good friend gave a lesson about being grateful. Sometimes we can get so wrapped up and consumed in our own thoughts that we let them swallow us up and let them become mountains in our mind. We had to write little things we were grateful for onto some sticky notes and then put them in an envelope which we could keep to look at when we have a particularly bad day.

On my list I wrote a few things like 'I am grateful for my eyes/ the smell of my perfume/ galaxy chocolate/ the glee version of Friday...' but then I started to think a bit more seriously, and not-so-seriously, and realised how much I had to be thankful for in my life. I'm not a pessimistic person or even a self-indulgent person (well, I hope I'm not!) but I realised that I do take an awful lot of my life and blessings for granted and this little simple exercise started a snowball effect inside me which made me stop and think about different things that I'm grateful for and really how I am so lucky and privileged.

It seems to becoming increasingly common that the norm is to complain. I see enough of it on my Facebook wall to just give an estimate statistic that about 80% of people's statuses are about complaints, moans and general sadness. Being sad just makes other people sad. I think everyone should do this little experiment and think properly about all the things in their lives they are grateful for.

From that one simple lesson I have learned that there are so many things to be grateful for in our lives. I have to admit I do whinge a fair bit, but this is a characteristic of mine that I want to change. I want to be a grateful person and appreciate every little drop of life. Starting from now.

Oh, and if you haven't heard the glee version of Friday...here it is: